1. Field of Use
This invention relates generally to machines for processing products, such as vegetables, fruit, or the like, by washing, scrubbing, abrading, peeling or the like, by means of rotatable processing rollers having brushes or abrading elements thereon. In particular, it relates to such machines having apparatus therein for controlling the product flow therethrough.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In some prior art processing machines of the aforesaid character, wherein one or more elongated rotatable processing rollers are provided, rotatable auxiliary rollers or drums having helically-shaped elements embodied therein are also provided to advance the products along the processing rollers and through the machine. Typically, the processing rollers and auxiliary rollers or drums are driven by complex chain drives, pulleys and V-belts, or geared drives. U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,750,211; 3,747,149; 2,824,318; and 1,407,501 illustrate the state of the art. In one type of prior art machine presently in use, a plurality of elongated processing rollers are arranged to define a generally U-shaped sloped trough in which the products are deposited for processing and from which they exit by the force of gravity. In the latter machine, there is a tendency for the product layer adjacent the rollers and those products at the bottom of the trough to remain there too long, and this results in non-uniform processing and excessive product waste. Furthermore, in the latter machine, passage of the products therethrough depends on gravity and there is no effective way to control product flow rate other than to change the slope of the trough. Also, there is no practical way to control the product load level within the trough other than to control the amount of product introduced.